In the course of the twentieth century and at the threshold of the twenty-first century, the images and roles of gender have constantly been changing. The concepts of masculinity and femininity have undergone significant shifts due to the media influence and advertising.
More importantly, commercials have had a potent impact on constructing gender identity, which deviates significantly from normal, adequate outlooks on male and female roles across cultures and nations. In the United States and abroad, there is a significant deviation in constructing masculinity and femininity, which becomes an integral part of shaping habits, behavior, and stereotypes.
While discussing the images of masculinity portrayed in modern commercials, specific emphasis should be placed on the role of violence and physical appearance in creating this concept. The video called Tough Guise: Violence, Media & the Crisis in Masculinity describes the current trends and patterns in perceiving female and male images.
To enlarge on this issue, the narrator explains that toughness and physical strength are main qualities that all men use to characterize the new paradigm of masculinity. Hence, masculinity becomes strongly associated with violence. Such a perception is created by media, and these attributes influence the trends accepted in dominated culture.
In contrast to violence and strength as common feature of male image in popular culture, women are losing their position because of their diminished role in social and political life.
Women, therefore, are depicted as victims and their importance is mostly associated with gender issues whereas men are often disregarded within this concept of gender. Media fails to mark violence and crimes as being performed by males. However, newspapers and television programs pay attention to gender as soon as women are involved in crimes.
The role of media in promoting the status quo is destructive because the images introduced in society distort the right and morally justified outlook on gender roles. Portrayal of women has been seriously deviated by concepts introduced in commercials since the beginning of the twentieth century.
In the video called Killing Us Softly, the author of the book criticizes the media images of women, in which physical appearance and beauty are prioritized whereas other qualities, such as intelligence and professional skills, are often ignored. Hence, in case women fail to conform to these stereotypes, there is a higher probability that they will fail to socialize successfully.
The current perceptions of gender roles have undergone dramatic shifts in terms of the appearance, social status, and relationships. In particular, there is a tendency in associating violence with masculinity, although mass media fail to underscore the role of males in shaping the constructs of violence, physical toughness, and strength because the opposite notions are not accepted while addressing male images.
Women have become more associated with beauty, girlish depiction, and weakness, whose defense mechanisms and intelligence are underestimated. In fact, the video representing the book Killing Us Softly provides evidence that the success of business organization in which women take managerial positions is more evident as compared to organizing with men holding leading positions.
In conclusion, mass media promotion of false gender stereotypes negatively influences the modern visions of which functions men and women should perform in society.
Focusing on physical appearances and neglecting other qualities contributes to gender inequality and destroys the right values, images, and roles assigned to masculinity and femininity. The assumption that all men should be violent and tough and women should always be victims is wrong because it prevents from establishing favorable social relationships.
Works Cited
Bentley University. Killing Us Softly . YouTube. 2012.
Cowmanll. Tough Guise: Violence, Media & the Crisis in Masculinity . YouTube. 2013.
Viewing gender as a social institution helps to observe how perceived ideas of how men and women should act shape peoples behaviors, relationships, and crucial life choices. As a rule, the foundations of gender-related beliefs and perceptions are implicitly taught and accepted within a family as the scene in which a child sees for the first time people interacting (Depraetere et al., 2020). By introducing a survey as the tool for collecting data about the perceived concept of gender norms and relationships, one can acquire crucial data about the principles of gender roles within the target community (Scharrer & Blackburn, 2018). Based on the results of the survey developed for these purposes, gender as the set of expectations for shaping peoples behaviors and attitudes suggests rather rigid standards for a family hierarchy within the target community, yet three is a potential for change.
To conduct the survey, four key questions were selected as the main talking points. Namely, the participants were asked about parental gender role expectations and traditional and nontraditional gender roles. In addition, the participants were asked to share whether their families valued the birth of a child of specific sex and whether they believed that toys should be gender-neutral. The specified questions were thought to provide a layout for examining patterns in perceiving gender roles within the target community. For the survey, a 25-year-old married man, a 30-year-old married woman, and a 21-year-old single young woman were selected.
The survey returned the results that indicated the prevalence of ideas that supported the traditional assignment of gender roles to men and women within families. Specifically, the answers to the survey indicated that most households expected that both a man and a woman would share responsibilities to ensure that the key tasks are completed and that all of the participants remain content. The described approach reflects a rather progressive perspective on gender roles within a family, opening opportunities for change, yet it does not explicitly subvert stereotypes (Balachandra et al., 2019). In turn, all of the participants indicated the relationships within which a man takes the leading role and a woman remains a minor participant in decision-making as conventional. Moreover, performative femininity and masculinity were identified as a concept accepted within the traditional paradigm of relationships by one of the interviewees.
All of the participants claimed that the sex of a child did not have any relevance as to how the child would be accepted in the family. Specifically, all of the respondents asserted that their family members would welcome any new one in a most heartfelt way no matter what the childs sex would be. However, all of the survey participants indicated that their families would be inclined to differentiate between the toys for a child based on the latters sex and the corresponding perceived gender role. Nonetheless, all of the participants confirmed that they would allow their children to play with all kinds of toys and would offer them a wide variety of toys to choose from, including those ascribed to male gender roles, female ones, and those without clear gender signifiers. The specified position can be considered rather progressive and indicates that a change in the perception of gender has been occurring within the target community (Unnever & Chouhy, 2020).
As the survey indicates, despite the presence of relatively clear preconceived notions about behavior and attitudes expected from men and women in the selected community, certain changes can be made to question the existing status quo. Therefore, the survey indicates that, while offering rather stiff standards for men and women to adhere to, especially in family interactions, the target set remains open for further transformation. Therefore, with the shift in the perception of men and women, as well as the destruction of stereotypes concerning each, one will be able to promote relationships based on equity and an unprejudiced attitude toward one another. Thus, a happier and friendlier community with fewer interpersonal conflicts will be created.
References
Balachandra, L., Briggs, T., Eddleston, K., & Brush, C. (2019). Dont pitch like a girl!: how gender stereotypes influence investor decisions. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 43(1), 116-137. Web.
Depraetere, J., Vandeviver, C., Beken, T. V., & Keygnaert, I. (2020). Big boys dont cry: A critical interpretive synthesis of male sexual victimization. Trauma, Violence, & Abuse, 21(5), 991-1010. Web.
Scharrer, E., & Blackburn, G. (2018). Cultivating conceptions of masculinity: Television and perceptions of masculine gender role norms. Mass Communication and Society, 21(2), 149-177. Web.
Unnever, J. D., & Chouhy, C. (2020). Race, gender, and perceptions of peer delinquency: A within-subject analysis. Deviant Behavior, 41(11), 1413-1430. Web.
The definition of who is a male or a female depends on the types of gender roles one was exposed to during the early ages. Gender is one of the worldwide dimensions on which differences in status are based. Gender roles are the expected behaviors and ways of conduct of both males and females by members of society (Anon. Gender roles 1). Different cultures impose different roles on their members. In most cases, parents have strong control over a persons supposed gender roles. They are the first teachers of attitudes and behavior that are expected in society. Some of these parents still hold the traditional definition of male and female gender roles.
Early feminism in the western society
In the early 1800s, womens roles were perceived to be domestic chores. Their roles were to keep the moral standards of the society and being housewives to their families. They were believed to be unequal to their male counterparts either socially or legally. However, during the late 1800s, they started demanding their place in society economically, politically, and socially. In America, primary and secondary teaching happened to be a womans profession in the late 1800s (Berkin, Miller and Cherny 8).
They were major changes such as industrialization, immigration, western expansion, and more districts schools were built in order to keep up with the changes. The state took up the roles of regulating and strengthening schools and this led to the need for more teachers and feminism grew rapidly especially in the urban areas. From 1850-1900 teaching was formalized and the percentage of female teachers increased although they were not paid as much as their male counters parts (Boyle 15).
Industrial revolution
The industrial revolution created opportunities and men left the teaching profession to work in the industries. Only a few men were left in the teaching career and those who taught chose to teach in the states where they could be employed as professionals (European commission 2).
During the period 1900 to 1950, there was a reduction in agriculture and people moved to the cities. There were new job openings, salary increased, and working conditions improved and teaching attracted many men. Women got other attractive options and teaching ceased to be a female career (Boyle 20)
Male and female roles in the modern society
Today we have a greater number of women in the labor force. The labor force accounts for about 45% of white men in the workplace. There is an increase in the number of women in the workplaces especially those between the ages of 25 and 54 years. With this increase in the number of women in the labor force, there has been a change in behaviors and attitudes. Both genders are now conscious of sexual harassment than they were before. Companies now have policies that are beneficial to both men and women although women still earn less compared to men (Anon. Gender roles 6)
Conclusion
In the late 1800s teaching in secondary and primary schools was highly feminized. This has changed with the industrial revolution and now women can work in any profession. In todays society, we have a greater number of women in the workplace as compared to men. This has been as a result of the increase in the fight for gender equality; they now have free rights such as the right to vote, rights toward reproduction and birth among others.
Works Cited
Anon. Gender roles. Advameg, Inc. 2010. Web.
Berkin, Carol; Miller L. Christopher; Cherny W. Robert. Making America: A History of the United States from 1865. New York: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1998.
Boyle, Elizabeth. The Feminization of Teaching in America. MIT program in womens and gender studies. 2010. Web.
European Commission. Gender equality. European Commission. 2010. Web.
Womens roles in the society have been evolving as time progresses. In the late 19th century, many nations had imbalanced demographics with respect to social structures. More women dominated the structures in relation to men. In the words of Rhoda Nunn, &there are a half a million more women than men in this unhappy country&so many odd women (Gissing 44).
However, in the modern society, this perception changed with women acquiring strategic roles in society. The primary objective of this paper is to bring into perspective a theory prescribing how gender is mapped onto life in an attempt to find out whether people performed gender in a somewhat free way or whether they are subject to the rules of gender.
An effort is also made to track the changes of the roles of women in the social fabric in the Victorian era by considering The Odd Women by George Gissing written in 1893. How the roles of women manifested themselves in the post Victorian era is considered through the book The Women in Love of David Lawrence.
Evolving Views of Gender Roles
How Gender is mapped onto Life
The question of how gender has evolved attracts large scholarly research, which is often open to criticism. However, literal ideas such as those postulated John Stuart and other writers of the Victorian era to early 20th century (1893-1920) reveal that, apart from being conceived, gender could indeed be performed.
In the gender trouble, Butler consolidates such ideas by discussing the manner in which gender can be done, or put differently the ways in which masculine ties and feminism are acted out (Deirdre 121). In the essay, Butler maintains that gender is neither inherent in the body nor static.
It is a matter of performance. In this sense, the performance of gender influences the outward side of an individual. In The Odd Women, women who did not have men to pair up with them were termed by pessimists as useless, lost futile lives (Gissing 44).
This belief constructed their perception in the world hence determining their gender performance. Social relations between male and female sex in the Mill world influenced such performance.
Social spheres in The Old Women, tantamount to Butlers argument, construct the concept of differences between genders. Therefore, the physical body is not a determinant of gender. Rather, it is an imitation of the ideal.
Butler approaches the concept of gender by deconstructing naturalness of various categories of sex coupled with gender via conducting a genealogy. In the genealogy, she evidences that the categories of gender are not naturally constructed: they evolve. Besides, they are brought into the limelight via specific power formations.
Based on Butlers argument, gender is mapped onto life through social construction of gender. People construct a particular perception regarding a particular gender profiling. Ursula evidences this argument in women in The Women in Love who resemble an in infant in the womb (Lawrence 7).
Just as an infant develops slowly, Ursula attempts to alter gender profiling of women. This way, she makes Butlers assertion clear that reification of gender categories is accomplished by gender doings or gender performance. This argument means that people perform their own genders.
In this perspective, it is arguable that gender has hanged from being a description of peoples natural sex into the description of what different genders are capable of performing. Hence, societal convention is responsible for the construction of gender.
However, Mary challenges this conventional view in The Odd Women. The odious fault of working class girls, in town and country alike, is that they are absorbed in preoccupation with animal nature (Gissing 71). This argument means that they are inherently different from men. Hence, to Mary, gender is inherent in the body.
In fact, from Butlers focal point, &categories of sex and gender are mutually reinforcing (McLaren 100). This claim implies that each of the two categories is constructed in a binary fashion. Such a construction results in the normalisation of distinctions of different people as fitting to particular membership groups described by the gender hegemonies.
From the dimension of these augments, the following sections of the paper bring in a theory describing how gender is mapped onto life through subjection to socially constructed gender rules, as opposed to the free will of people.
This position is clear by considering the evolution of gender roles of women in the nineteenth century in The Odd Women by George Gissing and The Women in Love by David Lawrence.
The Odd Women by George Gissing
In the modern societies, women have equal rights to participate in social economic activities with men. However, this position was not the case in the early nineteenth century. Rhoda Nunn informs that there are more than half a million women than men who are &odd women no making a pair with them (Gissing 44) evidencing the assertion in The Odd Women.
These excess women are referred to as odd ones since they do not have someone to pair up with. The surplus in the women population was a matter of concern since women were to be provided for by men.
Nevertheless, in the contextualisation of the evolution of gender articulated roles, the application of the term odd to describe the surplus and eccentricity of the population with reference to gender was not coincidental.
In the absence of men to support the surplus women population, such women were forced to pursue their own independent and unprecedented lives.
This case entailed seeking means of supporting themselves financially as an alternative to getting married. Upon reading The Odd Women, taking such a move for already matched women would be horrifying and perplexing to men.
In The Odd Women, the evolution of women implies a compromise of the supremacy of the male gender. Indeed, later in the nineteenth century, the position of women in the society had greatly improved particularly following the enactment of legal protection and legal provisions such as women property act, which guarantees women rights to own and use property (Tosh 12).
These legal provisions made even married women become more of like the odd women in that they started to gain independence from their husbands so that they could make their own decisions. Although the modern society views the positions of women in the society in this manner, the Victorian era viewed the female gender in direct contrast.
McLaren termed the odd women described by Gissing as an unwholesome social state (101). He further suggested, Rather, peremptory solution of government sponsored emigration to colonies (McLaren 101) meaning that women were commodities that would be bandied in the British European Empire.
A similar perception is echoed in The Odd Women through consideration of surplus women in the Victorian era as fitting in the process of nation building through engagement in tasks, which are less challenging. This assertion is reinforced by Gissings sentiments.
Mary could not fit in a position in the board of directors since she had many traits of character&strongly feminine&she did not seek to become known as a leader of a movement, yet her quest work was probably more effectual than the public career of women who propagandise for female emancipation (Gissing 63).
This argument perhaps provides an incredibly sound basis for making a presumption that gender is mapped onto life through subjection of socially constructed gender roles, as Wollstonecraft and Mill note, as opposed to the free will of people.
The Odd Women provides an encapsulation of tumult of the Victorian era initiating from the demising of Victorian patriarch and then transcending to the granddaughter who can best be described as the new brave woman (Deirdre 121).
The evolution of the imagery of the female gender is traced through archetype trials, which are largely passive, and which reflect Alice madden and Virginia. The two women figures come out in The Odd Women as useful for nothing (Gissing 177). On the other hand, there are evolved women who reflect the altered position of women in the society.
They include Rhoda Nunn and Mary Barfoot. These two women are determined to teach typing in school in the effort to change the position of girls in the society by providing them with technical skills. Additionally, there evolved a new breed of women.
Girls also acquired skills such as book keeping strategies, which not only fosters their independence by making them appealing to the labour market but also facilitates in alteration of the perceptions of gender roles in the society that was dominant in the Victorian patriarch era. In the novel, Rhoda is depicted as fulfilling philanthropic roles.
Rhoda is a militant woman character who is described in The Odd Woman as quite like a man in energy and resources (Gissing 32). This description evidences that gender is not a mere conception driven by perceptions of differences between men and women in terms of culturally determined roles for the two genders.
It can also be acted out. Indeed, Rhoda is a champion of feminism. On the subject of superfluous women, she believes that the condition provides great reserve, which offers substitute for worlds work pool when other women vanish in the matrimony (Gissing 41). In this sense, Rhoda presents a new social order that is meant to shape the performance of gender.
Women in Love by David Lawrence
The book The Odd Women presents two struggles for women to move from one perspective of gender performance to another as evidenced by different characters such as Rhoda. Written by David Lawrence, The Women in Love masterpiece explores the relationships that exist between women and men while not negating how nature interplays in the relationship between the two genders body and mind.
The novel suggests regeneration of inexorable coupled with natural relationships between women and men coupled with the relationship between men and nature in the effort to provide a thorough exploration of life mysteries (Leavis 115).
In the understanding of life mysteries, it is perhaps important to consider how gender interplays. In this extent, the work of Lawrence may be interpreted from the paradigms of being depictive of gender performance (Cross 54).
Much similar to calls made in The Odd Women, in The Women in Love, a call is made to transit from the conservatism Victorian age approaches in spelling out interactions between men and women.
The presentation of Birkin and Ursula in pair underscores that Lawrence has an immense hope that people can be able to dichotomise themselves from ill-fated perceptions towards the roles of men and women in the society siphoned from the past Victorian era (Beynon 29).
Birkin depicts a death eater charter who is capable to contemplate his moves as he muddled looking for his dream lover: women who would bring the true meaning for his individuality. He is lucky to find Ursula who is an ideal romanticised woman.
Ursula is described as one whose life is like a &shoot that is growing steadily, but which has not yet come above ground (Lawrence 51). From this description, it is arguable that Lawrence presents gender in different dimensions. Men have supremacy over women while women are the gorgeous tools for making men happy based on their physical appearance.
They should have the capacity to capture the attention of men (Asher 3). Additionally, Lawrence paints the picture that women are meant to make mens lives easier as evidenced by the statement, He worshipped her as age worships youth, he gloried in her, because, in his one grain of faith, he was young as she, he was her proper mate&this marriage with her was his resurrection and his life (Lawrence 371).
This statement presents a change from the Victorian era perception of the female gender from being subverted and open to misuse by the male gender at will to seeing women as people that men cannot live without. Hence, men must appreciate their roles in the society that is shaped by perceptions of modernism as opposed to traditional conservatism aspirations.
The above argument implies that women in The Women in Love are depicted as people having evolved roles in the society in that they play proactive roles in shaping mens lives.
Although it sounded right for men to rule over women in the early nineteenth century, consistent with the Butlers ideas on gender performance, the new woman gender performance roles make man a logical being in terms of violation of the rights of women (Black 57). For instance, in The Women in Love, Gerald struggles with Gudrun.
In doing this act, he is being driven by his deeply seated internal violence. This argument explains the contribution of the Victorian era attitudes towards the opposite gender in the characterisation of transition into modernisation era where women deserve all due respect from men (Asher 8).
In this extent and directly congruent with the contemporary discussion of gender performance before and after Victoria era, gender performance can be argued as being instigated by socially defined norms in the Victorian era.
However, in the modern era, gender performance is altered to be driven by self-will. This approach is evident in Geralds decision to quit struggling with Gudrun after realising that what he was doing was indeed what he never wanted.
Conclusion
In the Victorian age, womens roles in the society were clearly defined in a manner that contrasted with the modern approaches, which are defined by feminism. In the effort to prescribe a theory on whether gender performances are defined by somewhat free way, or whether they are subject to the rules of gender, the paper tracked the evolution of gender roles by considering two literal works: The Odd Women by George Gissing written and The Women in Love by Lawrence.
Works Cited
Asher, Kenneth. Nietzsche, D.H. Lawrence and Irrationalism. Neophilologus 59.1(1995): 1-16. Print.
Beynon, Richard. D. H. Lawrence: The Rainbow and Women in Love. Cambridge: Icon Books, 2002. Print.
Black, Michael. Lawrences England: The Major Fiction, 1913 1920. New Jersey, NJ: Palgrave-MacMillan, 2001. Print.
Cross, Charles. Women in Love: A Novel of Mythic Realism. Boston, Mass: Twayne. 1991. Print.
Deirdre, David. Ideologies of Patriarchy, Feminism, and Fiction in The Odd Women. Feminist Studies 10.1(1994): 117-139. Print.
Gissing, George. The Odd Women. New York: Oxford University Press, 1993. Print.
Lawrence, David. Women in Love. New York: Oxford University Press, 2008. Print.
Leavis, Richard. Lawrence and Art. Shanghai: Shanghai Art Publishing Press, 1995. Print.
McLaren, Margaret. Feminism Foucault and Embodied Subject. New York, NY: Sunny Press, 2001. Print.
Tosh, John. A Mans Place: Masculinity and the Middle-Class Home in Victorian England. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2007. Print.
The understanding of how gender roles are portrayed in the media and the general perception of the expected behavior for men and women communicated non-verbally in the society is the basis on which children build their gender identities. Hence, it is essential to recognize the biases and confront the historical stereotypes, such as females having to care for their families while men having to work and earn money is vital for advancing society. This paper will analyze three sources, Moana Disney Movie, a Ted Talk by Justin Baldoni, and an article by Sonja Livingston titled Mad Love: The Ballad of Fred and Allie, to address the definitions of femininity and masculinity.
Analysis of the Sources: Moana Disney Movie
In Moana Disney Movie, the portrayal of the main character, Moana, confronts the way that Disney traditionally creates their female characters. Usually, females in Disney motion pictures are consistent with the traditional notion of femininity, and typically the main characters are princesses. As such, they wear long dresses and do not engage in activities that would show their courage and strength, which is what is expected from women in todays society.
Moana, on the other hand, is shown as a brave female character who is willing to go on a sea journey and fight in order to save her home island. Her character traits are not consistent with the historical and societal perception of a female since she is courageous and not agreeable. For instance, when confronted with the God of Men, who refuses to sail with Moana, she defends her right to stay on the canoe. Moreover, in line with combating the gender stereotypes, the character of the demigod Maui also confronts the stereotypical portrayal of male characters. Maui often demonstrates his upbeat personality; he is usually not serious and jokes around. Moreover, in the plot of this film, he causes the crisis that requires Moana and him to embark on the journey. Hence, both these characters demonstrate the positive traits of the males and females that go against the social stereotype of how men and women should behave.
Ted Talk by Justin Baldoni
Baldonis Ted Talk is titled When Im Done Trying to be Men Enough, and in it, he discusses the pressure that men feel due to the stereotypical behaviors and traits that society has labeled men with. For example, he shows the photos from his work as an actor, where he is typically portrayed shirtless, showing his body. The implication of this exhibit is that men are expected to be fit, while on the other hand, fit, good-looking, and confident males are often stereotyped as rapists. This inconsistency does not allow individuals to choose how they want to look due to the expectations that men have to work out in a gym and be strong. On the other hand, the males who look this way are labeled as rapists and therefore regarded as dangerous. Baldoni states that the majority of his characters are the portrayal of machismo, charisma, and power; however, this is not the way the actor perceives himself.
The inconsistency that Baldoni discusses is the result of how men have been viewed historically. He states that the feminine features have been perceived as the opposite to the masculine, and therefore, a man had to reject everything that would hint at him being vulnerable or weak. To be accepted in society and by other men, one would have to act as strong and charismatic. However, in reality, men, similarly to women, feel an array of emotions and do not always feel strong, which is why it is important to reexamine the stereotypes surrounding both genders.
Mad Love: The Ballad of Fred and Allie by Sonja Livingston
Livingstons story shows a stereotypical portrayal of a female and the traits and behaviors expected from women. For example, when describing Frederica, Livingston writes that she had brown eyes and a body like a new branch in spring, thin but coming together with new growth (para. 1). Moreover, this girl would laugh and sign, always having a good and cheerful mood. However, it is important to understand that, in reality, women do not always have these character traits, and some of them are serious and do not enjoy signing. Since this short story was staged in 1890, the portrayal of Fred shows how women were stereotyped historically.
Conclusion
In summary, this paper is the analysis of the definition of masculinity and femininity based on the three sources: Moana Disney Movie, a Ted Talk by Justin Baldoni, and an article by Sonja Livingston titled Mad Love: The Ballad of Fred and Allie. These resources can help understand what it means to be a man and a woman in todays society since Moanas character confronts the stereotype about women being weak. Freds character from Mad Love: The Ballad of Fred and Allie shows that women historically were expected to be cheerful and charming. Moreover, these stereotypes affect men as well because Baldoni states that he has always felt the pressure to be strong and charismatic. However, since in todays society, there are discussions about the damaging images of men and women, people can feel more freedom when their character traits and behaviors do not correspond with the stereotypical features.
Munros Boys and Girls is an emotional story of a girls realization about her future life as a woman. The protagonist is an 11-year-old child, living on a fox farm with her family. They follow the traditional patriarchal household standards, where the mother stays home doing housework, and men work outside. Munros Boys and Girls is a story about a puzzled girl who struggles to find the balance between the battles of her inner female-housewife side, like her mother, and a boyish character who likes to help her father on the fox farm.
Throughout the story, the reader can observe the mindset of the girl change and, disappointingly, she accepts gender roles of that time. The story depicts clear dominant male gender roles in society and womens subservient position. The narrator describes every member of her family, where the reader can get the idea of how this household functions. One can feel the authors condemnation of unequal womens rights throughout the whole piece.
In the story, the protagonist realizes how her entire future will be similar to the relationship model inside her family, which is based on the injustice of male perception specifically towards her. The girl is treated as if she cannot have anything to do with any manual work or questions that do not concern household business. In one of the quotes after the girl asks a question, her grandmother said, Thats none of girls business (Munro). Such attitude was new for the narrator; however, later on she started to understand her responsibilities as a female.
The household roles in the narrators family are clearly set, and each member has their own chores and responsibilities. It is interesting to follow how the little girl explores who she does not want to become based on her mothers behavior. In the book, the main characters mother rarely goes to the mens territory because it is only for men. Moreover, the mother never goes outside the house premises unless it is connected to her essential housework.
The mothers example makes the narrator realize that it is not the life she wants to live free and unscathed. Every time the girl looks at her mother, she feels pity, and no matter how hard everyone tries to make the narrator do housework and endorses her to be a true lady, it is not someone she aspires to be.
The moment of epiphany for the narrator is caused by a chain of thoughts that she already has, but one event specifically triggers it. Her father kills horses for foxes to eat; however, there is one horse, Flora, whom the protagonist especially loves. One day, Flora manages to set free from the father. At that moment, the girl has an opportunity to shut the gates and keep the horse, but she does otherwise. The narrator opens the gates wider so the horse can escape, knowing well that her father will inevitably catch and kill Flora. In the book, Munro depicts horses as a symbol that represents freedom, power, and liberty of choices, which the narrator aspires to have.
Unfortunately, due to the indisputable social norms, she can only dream about such liberties. However, the powerful symbol of the horse is ruined when they are ruthlessly killed in the domestic prison, where they have no ability to feel the wilderness and free-spirited living, which identically corresponds to the narrators state of mind.
At the opportunity to set Flora free, the main character realizes that she is held captive, just like the horse, even though she has that inner rebelliousness and strength inside of her. The girl has a moment of epiphany that she is no longer taking her fathers side; she will not bear the unjust attitude toward her anymore. The main character wants to run away from the conservative family and does not want to be put in the box of social standards.
The protagonist compares herself to the horse and understands that she is just like Flora and will forever be held back from freedom; she says, A girl was not, as I had supposed, simply what I was; it was what I had to become (Munro). This moment of epiphany makes the narrator understand how standardized the world she lives in is, and, regardless of her wishes, she must always conform to a set of accepted societal norms.
When the narrator consciously opens the gate to free the horse, Flora, she sees that she is similar to the horse: locked up in the house with no freedom. She wants to let Flora feel that last moment of being free before she is killed. According to one of the definitions of epiphany in Merriam-Webster dictionary, it is an intuitive grasp of reality through something (such as an event) usually simple and striking ( Epiphany ).
This definition accurately describes the feeling the narrator experiences when she opens the gates for the horse to escape. She knows instantly that her fate is the same as that of the other women before her. The protagonist says, I did not regret it; when she came running at me, I held the gate open; that was the only thing I could do (Munro). Deep inside, she understands it could be the last thing the girl could freely do before she must adopt specific gender roles that have stayed the same for generations.
Later in life, the main character has to abide by societal rules as well as ideas about women and their roles within the family. The stereotypical public mindset takes over, and even though she always goes back to the thoughts of her childhood and aspirations she has, the girl will never be able to live up to the role model she has.
Many articles analyze the moment of epiphany for the main character of Munros the story Boys and Girls in depth and debate on the important issues the author intended to discuss. In one of the works, Nischik accurately explained the message Munro intended to convey to her readers:
The reference to the narrators story compositions shows the effect of her ongoing socialization into received gender patterns and thereby points to the central theme of this story, the constructivist aspect of gender identity how male and female children are socialized according to different role patterns, forming them into two different species, boys and girls. (210)
This quote describes the nature of the epiphany the narrator has when she opens the gates for the horse. The girl becomes aware of the strict borders between girls and boys she will have to face, and it develops into the feeling of epiphany for the main character.
The protagonist has a bright moment of realization that her life will never be her way; she has to live in this patriarchal society her whole life. However, this contradicts her views and the narrator despises the world where men are always right; she does not dream of being a servant to superior males. When the protagonist was younger, she fantasized about saving people and becoming a superhero, but life changed. All the girl dreams about now is being saved from this sexist environment. I absolutely agree with this quote in relation to the short story; it helps to understand the central problem of this piece and sets a clear idea of what it is aimed to convey to readers.
The moment of epiphany in the narrators mind is a breaking point, where she imagines the way her future is going to unfold. In retrospect, she thinks of injustices in her relationship with her brother. Even though she is an older sister, she meets constant prohibitions with doing some work. Her parents keep telling her: Wait till Laird gets a little bigger, then youll have a real help (Munro). What offends her the most is the fact that she is never even considered to be trusted with any work to help the father, because of her gender.
The absence of the narrators name indicates that she is just someone who has no rights or power over the male presence and cannot have any personality. In contrast, her brothers name, Laird, already speaks for his dominant position in society. It is consonant with the word Lord and should not be neglected by readers because it is vital to the storys main message. The boy has always been superior in relation to his sister, even though she is older.
Adults neglect the fact that the girl is capable of doing manual work better than her brother, and never show her a drop of appreciation. The 11 year-old gets treated like a person of secondary importance, a puppet who constantly gets told what to do. Such behavior causes the narrator to experience the moment of epiphany and to slowly walk away from her natural tomboy personality, and instead accustom to accepted social standards, even though they utterly contradict her own.
Works Cited
Epiphany. Merriam-Webster. Dictionary. Web.
Munro, Alice. Boys and Girls. Women in Literature. Web.
Nischik, Reingard M., editor. The Canadian Short Story: Interpretations, Boydell & Brewer, 2007. JSTOR. Web.
Munros Boys and Girls is an emotional story of a girls realization about her future life as a woman. The protagonist is an 11-year-old child, living on a fox farm with her family. They follow the traditional patriarchal household standards, where the mother stays home doing housework, and men work outside. Munros Boys and Girls is a story about a puzzled girl who struggles to find the balance between the battles of her inner female-housewife side, like her mother, and a boyish character who likes to help her father on the fox farm.
Throughout the story, the reader can observe the mindset of the girl change and, disappointingly, she accepts gender roles of that time. The story depicts clear dominant male gender roles in society and womens subservient position. The narrator describes every member of her family, where the reader can get the idea of how this household functions. One can feel the authors condemnation of unequal womens rights throughout the whole piece.
In the story, the protagonist realizes how her entire future will be similar to the relationship model inside her family, which is based on the injustice of male perception specifically towards her. The girl is treated as if she cannot have anything to do with any manual work or questions that do not concern household business. In one of the quotes after the girl asks a question, her grandmother said, Thats none of girls business (Munro). Such attitude was new for the narrator; however, later on she started to understand her responsibilities as a female.
The household roles in the narrators family are clearly set, and each member has their own chores and responsibilities. It is interesting to follow how the little girl explores who she does not want to become based on her mothers behavior. In the book, the main characters mother rarely goes to the mens territory because it is only for men. Moreover, the mother never goes outside the house premises unless it is connected to her essential housework.
The mothers example makes the narrator realize that it is not the life she wants to live free and unscathed. Every time the girl looks at her mother, she feels pity, and no matter how hard everyone tries to make the narrator do housework and endorses her to be a true lady, it is not someone she aspires to be.
The moment of epiphany for the narrator is caused by a chain of thoughts that she already has, but one event specifically triggers it. Her father kills horses for foxes to eat; however, there is one horse, Flora, whom the protagonist especially loves. One day, Flora manages to set free from the father. At that moment, the girl has an opportunity to shut the gates and keep the horse, but she does otherwise. The narrator opens the gates wider so the horse can escape, knowing well that her father will inevitably catch and kill Flora. In the book, Munro depicts horses as a symbol that represents freedom, power, and liberty of choices, which the narrator aspires to have.
Unfortunately, due to the indisputable social norms, she can only dream about such liberties. However, the powerful symbol of the horse is ruined when they are ruthlessly killed in the domestic prison, where they have no ability to feel the wilderness and free-spirited living, which identically corresponds to the narrators state of mind.
At the opportunity to set Flora free, the main character realizes that she is held captive, just like the horse, even though she has that inner rebelliousness and strength inside of her. The girl has a moment of epiphany that she is no longer taking her fathers side; she will not bear the unjust attitude toward her anymore. The main character wants to run away from the conservative family and does not want to be put in the box of social standards.
The protagonist compares herself to the horse and understands that she is just like Flora and will forever be held back from freedom; she says, A girl was not, as I had supposed, simply what I was; it was what I had to become (Munro). This moment of epiphany makes the narrator understand how standardized the world she lives in is, and, regardless of her wishes, she must always conform to a set of accepted societal norms.
When the narrator consciously opens the gate to free the horse, Flora, she sees that she is similar to the horse: locked up in the house with no freedom. She wants to let Flora feel that last moment of being free before she is killed. According to one of the definitions of epiphany in Merriam-Webster dictionary, it is an intuitive grasp of reality through something (such as an event) usually simple and striking ( Epiphany ).
This definition accurately describes the feeling the narrator experiences when she opens the gates for the horse to escape. She knows instantly that her fate is the same as that of the other women before her. The protagonist says, I did not regret it; when she came running at me, I held the gate open; that was the only thing I could do (Munro). Deep inside, she understands it could be the last thing the girl could freely do before she must adopt specific gender roles that have stayed the same for generations.
Later in life, the main character has to abide by societal rules as well as ideas about women and their roles within the family. The stereotypical public mindset takes over, and even though she always goes back to the thoughts of her childhood and aspirations she has, the girl will never be able to live up to the role model she has.
Many articles analyze the moment of epiphany for the main character of Munros the story Boys and Girls in depth and debate on the important issues the author intended to discuss. In one of the works, Nischik accurately explained the message Munro intended to convey to her readers:
The reference to the narrators story compositions shows the effect of her ongoing socialization into received gender patterns and thereby points to the central theme of this story, the constructivist aspect of gender identity how male and female children are socialized according to different role patterns, forming them into two different species, boys and girls. (210)
This quote describes the nature of the epiphany the narrator has when she opens the gates for the horse. The girl becomes aware of the strict borders between girls and boys she will have to face, and it develops into the feeling of epiphany for the main character.
The protagonist has a bright moment of realization that her life will never be her way; she has to live in this patriarchal society her whole life. However, this contradicts her views and the narrator despises the world where men are always right; she does not dream of being a servant to superior males. When the protagonist was younger, she fantasized about saving people and becoming a superhero, but life changed. All the girl dreams about now is being saved from this sexist environment. I absolutely agree with this quote in relation to the short story; it helps to understand the central problem of this piece and sets a clear idea of what it is aimed to convey to readers.
The moment of epiphany in the narrators mind is a breaking point, where she imagines the way her future is going to unfold. In retrospect, she thinks of injustices in her relationship with her brother. Even though she is an older sister, she meets constant prohibitions with doing some work. Her parents keep telling her: Wait till Laird gets a little bigger, then youll have a real help (Munro). What offends her the most is the fact that she is never even considered to be trusted with any work to help the father, because of her gender.
The absence of the narrators name indicates that she is just someone who has no rights or power over the male presence and cannot have any personality. In contrast, her brothers name, Laird, already speaks for his dominant position in society. It is consonant with the word Lord and should not be neglected by readers because it is vital to the storys main message. The boy has always been superior in relation to his sister, even though she is older.
Adults neglect the fact that the girl is capable of doing manual work better than her brother, and never show her a drop of appreciation. The 11 year-old gets treated like a person of secondary importance, a puppet who constantly gets told what to do. Such behavior causes the narrator to experience the moment of epiphany and to slowly walk away from her natural tomboy personality, and instead accustom to accepted social standards, even though they utterly contradict her own.
Works Cited
Epiphany. Merriam-Webster. Dictionary. Web.
Munro, Alice. Boys and Girls. Women in Literature. Web.
Nischik, Reingard M., editor. The Canadian Short Story: Interpretations, Boydell & Brewer, 2007. JSTOR. Web.
Music is an enormous role in adolescents’ understanding of sex, relationships, and self-identity. ‘Entering relationships are part of the adolescent experience and factors contribute to the nature and potential of these relationships’. The avenue most adolescents take to learn about relationships, sex, drugs, etc. is music. The way an adolescent learns about relationships, where and whom they learn it from, all contributes to the potentiality of their future relationships. Considering the importance of music as a major social and cultural influence on the development of gender norms, sexual attitudes, and behavior among adolescents, it is noticeably important to understand the context of the music.
The title of the song is about actor, celebrity, and comedian Kevin Hart, who admitted to cheating on his wife and mother of his child in late 2017. In ‘Kevin’s Heart,’ Cole is singing from the stance of a person addicted to drugs & sex. This is also a reference to the name of the album ‘KOD’ which J.Cole explained had three meanings: ‘kids on drugs, king overdosed, and kill our demons’. Throughout the track, he references taking Xanax, smoking blunts and relates the use of drugs to potentially cheating on his partner. The music video of the track prominently features Hart, receiving judgment from people in the public but ultimately recognizing his own mistakes as a ‘growth opportunity’. Now having explained important background information we can begin to depict the song and further analyze the meaning behind its’ lyrics.
‘She my number one, I don’t need nothing on the side’, ‘But my phone be blowing up, temptations on my line’. What Cole is expressing in these two lines is self-awareness, knowing he (Hart) has a committed relationship but still has temptations on his mind because of women calling. This feeds into the gender stereotype that men are weak to temptation and eventually fail to stay committed to one woman. ‘I stare at the screen a while before I press decline’, ‘But she plants a seed and it still lingers in my mind’. In these two lines, Cole describes Hart rejecting a women’s phone call and not being able to let go of the thought of being with her because she planted a seed in his mind. The meaning of this line is trying to blame women for being malicious and planting promiscuous thoughts into men. A common gender stereotype in hip hop/rap music is women being easy and deceitful with bad intentions.
‘Told myself I’m strong enough to shake it and I’m trying’, ‘But I’m only human, I know loving you’s a crime’, ‘If I take this cookie now one day I’ll do the time’. The first two lines are explaining Hart’s efforts to shake off his thoughts but ultimately he tries to justify his cheating because he’s ‘only human’. The last line explains if he takes this ‘cookie’, (cookie is slang for female genitalia) that he will end up paying the consequences. ‘I get the skirt when I want’, ‘Due to the money aroma (somebody)’. Here Cole describes Hart’s success and accumulated wealth, the women around him can smell the money on him and they know he’s rich so they throw themselves at him, this is a continuation of the previous line and is saying he can get the ‘Skrrt’ (women) due to his wealth. Fueling the gender stereotype that women are ‘gold diggers’ and are willing to do promiscuous things in return for money and luxurious gifts.
‘ ‘Cause love wouldn’t lie like I lie and it’s wild’, ‘Wanna have my cake and another cake too’, ‘Even if the baker don’t bake like you’, ‘Even when the flavor don’t taste like you’. The first line is referencing that the cheater has now even confused himself, as he knows full well that people who truly love each other aren’t supposed to lie and cheat. The guilt and shame he feels are now making him think that if he loved his wife and mother of his child, he wouldn’t and shouldn’t be unfaithful to her. He’s manipulating his wording so that his wife feels bad for him because he is also ‘confused’. The following lines ‘have your cake and eat it too’ is a phrase that describes having two good things happening that typically never happen together. Cole plays on this, saying that Hart wants two cakes, alluding to his wife whom he loves, and the women he cheats on his wife with. He takes the phrase a step farther, saying that he doesn’t care who bakes the cake or if the flavor is even the same; he craves many different women, regardless of whether they pale in comparison to the woman that he is with. These lines project objectifying messages towards women, they have no significant value to him.
‘My ego get stroked and I bruise her’. Like the rest of this track, this section is about infidelity. Cole is saying that Hart sleeping with other women makes him feels like he’s the man, hence, his ‘ego gets stroked.’ But every time he gives in to his ego-gratification by cheating, he ‘bruises” his wife, a metaphor for the damage and pain he’s inflicting on her. He continually fails to learn from this mistake, as it happens again and again, which is why he repeats the line. This gratifies the gender stereotype that men don’t care about women as he seems to keep repeating his mistakes. ‘On the road I’m a mack, I’m a chooser’, ‘I’m a addict, I’m maskin’ that’, ‘Kevin’s Heart’. A ‘mack’ is a player, a man who is proficient at getting women. At home, Hart is a great man in his relationship, but once he hits the road he’s with multiple women. Cole discusses sex addiction throughout the song. He’s masking his cheating ways to hide them from his wife, as shown in the previous lines ‘my actions, I know they confusing, at home I look happy as usual’. He makes it seem like he’s happy and things appear to be normal with him, but it’s the mask he’s using to hide his demons (him being a mack and a chooser, and cheating when he’s away) from his wife.
‘Of the songs sampled, 18.3 % involved males valuing sex above all else. 18 songs were categorized as R&B/HipHop, and 11 songs were from the rap genre’. From research samples collected from the article, it is clear to see the view of male artists and how they analyze themselves needing and asking for sex. This speaks on higher levels, why does the male artist feel the need to describe themselves in a way of being needy for sexual activity? My interpretation is men stereotype themselves as ‘the man’ a glorified view of a man being a player or always desiring and receiving sexual interactions. Just like the song did when Cole stated Hart wanted two cakes, not just one (referring to women) and also his referencing sex addiction as a gender norm for men.
‘Females in music are portrayed as naive, submissive creatures in need of male protection, adoration, and direction’. At the end of Coles song, the last lines are: ‘I done did so much that when you see you might go blind’, ‘What’s done in the dark will always find a way to shine’, ‘I done did so much that when you see you might go blind’. This is a gender norm in music that women can’t ‘handle’ difficult or hard information, projecting them to be submissive and in need of men like the research of the article found. He’s explaining she might go ‘blind’ from the light of his infidelities, she wouldn’t be able to cope with it.
To further understand why most hip hop/rap lyrics and music videos project men to write scandalous, sexist, and misogynistic lyrics about women and how they treat them. I’ve extended the topic to research the culture and background of hip hop/rap lyrics. ‘ For the most part, scholars agree that images of manhood in rap music are hypersexual, misogynistic, and violent. They include the importance of historical controlling images; sociology of black life in the ghetto, media constructions of black male sexuality and the impact of corporate influences of rap’. Images of African American masculinity in rap and hip hop have been a common staple in lyrics and music videos. The media also constructs African American male sexuality; there are stereotypes as to how African American men should be perceived as masculine and what their sexual desires should be. This construction of gender and racial bias to African American men can be the cause behind the lyrics to sustain certain ‘manhood’ beliefs.
To gain further insight into the African American culture of rap and hip hop, and firsthand interpretations, I watched ‘Free Meek’ a documentary on amazon prime video; about Philly rapper Meek Mill and his incarceration story and the come up of his career in the music industry. ‘It’s cold at night, and I ain’t talkin’ about the weather, they layin’ down in a bed without nobody to tell ’em they love ’em every night’. Meek Mill provides us with inside knowledge of how children and youth growing up in his communities feel. This could be the reasoning for lyrics providing information such as not loving or valuing women came about and how it’s perceived as normal. ‘You want to protect yourself now, because you could smell death when you go to the door, and you goin’ to the door like, man, it smell like somebody goin’ die today’. Once again we gain more insight into the environment that some rappers endure, and could explain the violence in some of these rappers’ lyrics; this also connects to another statement made by Meek Mill. ‘I was raised in how to stay alive, how to stay out of prison, what’s the right moves to make so you don’t lose your life’ (Meek Mill, Free Meek, Season 1: Two Americas). Rapper Meek Mill speaks about the cultural differences in how he was raised. This proved to be of big influence in his music as well. The documentary analyzed his lyrics to his life experiences the way he ‘came up’ and how he had to survive. Many of his rap songs describe gang violence, misogynistic views, drug use, and the harsh reality for many African American males; Which are a big influence in rap and hip hop lyrics and music videos.
Though the song I chose wasn’t as explicit as other songs in the hip hop and rap category. The connections to the lyrics, interpretation of the research of African American communities, and the documentary ‘Free Meek’ is visible. All the research tied together sheds light on why rap and hip hop music has misogynistic views, gender norms, hypersexual themes, etc. A related issue that could be explored is the shifts if there has been any, in the social context of sexual behavior in rap and hip hop music. For example, have there been major changes in association with social behavior and sexuality such as romance, alcohol and drug use, crime, and violence over time? Future research could focus on addressing these questions and provide informed relative theories.
Works Cited
Bretthauer, Brook, et al. ‘A Feminist Analysis of Popular Music.’ Journal of Feminist Family Therapy, vol. 18, no. 4, 2007, pp. 29–51., doi:10.1300/j086v18n04_02.
Herd, Denise. ‘Conflicting Paradigms on Gender and Sexuality in Rap Music: A Systematic Review.’ Sexuality & Culture, vol. 19, no. 3, 2014, pp. 577–589., doi:10.1007/s12119-014-9259-9.
Cooper, B. Lee. ‘Women’s Studies and Popular Music Stereotypes.’ Popular Music and Society, vol. 23, no. 4, 1999, pp. 31–43., doi:10.1080/03007769908591751.
‘Prime Video: Free Meek – Season 1.’ Prime Video: Free Meek – Documentary , www.primevideo.com/detail/0FWOXRQY8Y833E80GLEDS6XO83.
Collins, Patricia Hill. ‘Black Sexual Politics.’ Feb. 2004, doi:10.4324/9780203309506.
Stereotypes have existed for as long as people could assume things about one another. Good or bad, they are the foundation that people view each other as. It was only recently that society began to dismiss said stereotypes as fact, and instead began to see one another as they truly are. This change did not come fast enough, as the story Boys and Girls by Alice Munro was mostly based around the stereotypes surrounding men and women. The story at hand follows the perspective of the nameless daughter of a fox farmer. She loves working on the farm with her quiet father but her mother continues to push her into working in the kitchen with her instead. The girl opposes to this because she does not want to inevitably become like her mother, the stereotypical woman and housewife. These female stereotypes were pushed onto her from such a young age in such a manner that they eventually were able to changes the girls views on herself and her passion for farming.
The people and beliefs that a child spends their developmental years around have a strong influence on who they will inevitably become in their adult years. For example, the majority of people that consider themselves of the Christian faith have said beliefs because he or she grew up around people with Christian beliefs. This of course is not limited to religious stances as there are many other ways of being that children may pick up on. Whether someone grows up to be racist, misogynistic, bigited, generous, kind hearted, religious of any kind, or anything else good or bad, these things are developed from a very young age. These traits are mostly taught to children by their parents or the people they spend prolonged periods of time with in their youth. In David M. Csinos’ article Will Boys Be Boys and Girls Be Girls? Correcting Gender Stereotypes Through Ministry with Children, he asks the question of whether or not children do in fact develop personality traits through their surroundings. He turns to the words of Barbara Rogoff to answer this pressing question. Csinos goes on to say “In [Rogoff’s] words, ‘the rapid development of young children into skilled participants in society is accomplished through children’s routine, and often tacit, guided participation in ongoing cultural activities as they observe and participate with others in culturally organised activities.’”(25) In Boys and Girls it first becomes prominent that the main character is aware of the female stereotypes when she talks about the fact that she finds it odd that her own mother is down by their family’s barn and not in the house or the garden (156). She says this because she grew up seeing her mother nowhere but the said places so now she thinks it is weird for a woman like her to be near a barn.
Many kids spend their childhood blind to society’s expectations of them in their near future. It is not until children grow to be young adults that the worlds intentions shines light on the young and impressionable minds. In Boys and Girls the narrator and her brother Laird start the story practically gender-less. They do not fit into the set gender stereotypes that many would associate with a little girl and little boy. The narrator enjoys farming, dreads staying in the house with her mother and dreams of being a hero. While Laird starts the story as a sensitive superserviant little boy doing anything his family, including his sister, tells him to do. Marlene Goldman talks about the progression of the children into their initial gender roles in her article Penning in the Bodies: The Construction of Gendered Subjects in Alice Munro’s ‘Boys and Girls’. She uses the children’s room as an example of symbolism to show that the children have yet to grow into their specific roles. She states, “Laird has not yet adopted a gender role associated with the father. Nor has the narrator been forced to sever her connections to the father and take up an identity aligned with her mother. This hypothesis concerning her male orientation gains support from the nature of her nocturnal fantasies.” The narrator, by the middle of the story, begins to struggle to keep in touch with her true self, that being the girl that loves to be outside with her brother and father on the farm.
Many children also end up growing up to be the people that others treat them as as a child. This is quite prominent in Boys and Girls. There is a transition in the story where the narrator begins to throw away her tomboyish persona and begins to act like the little girl that others see her as happens. This happens when a salesman comes to their farm and her father says “Like to have you meet my new hired hand.’ The salesman then responds with, “Could of fooled me… I thought it was only a girl'(155). After this incident the story and the narrator begins to shift. She begins to see what people expect from her as a girl and slowly, but surely conforms to the world’s beliefs. In Maria Olsson and Sarah E. Martiny’s article Does Exposure to Counterstereotypical Role Models Influence Girls’ and Women’s Gender Stereotypes and Career Choices? A Review of Social Psychological Research, they state “Early gender-stereotypical beliefs may shape children’s interests and have an accumulative effect on their skill acquisition and aspirations”(4). This proves true when, by the end of the story, the narrator gives up on her want to be a farmer with her father and gives into everyone’s thoughts of her as just another little girl.
Many kids, like the narrator, want nothing more that to become someone of their own. Most people like to think of themselves as unique and one of a kind, but just simply is not the case in most situations. In the story, the narrator tries her best to stay herself, a girl that works hard and is not fit stereotypes. It is not until the climax at the end of the story that she breaks. She can not force herself to keep her emotions in and as she apologises for her actions, she cries and her father responds with “Nevermind, […] she is just a girl”(161). In the article (Un-)Doing Gender: Alice Munro, ‘Boys and Girls’ (1964) by Reingard M. Nischik, she shines like on this moment saying, “this reaction represents her initiation into a female gender role […] The implications are disastrous for the narrator. Girls behave irrationally and – like the mentally handicapped – cannot be held responsible for their actions”(213). This shows that after everything is said and done. It is inevitable that children will grow into their stereotypes no matter how strongly willed they are.
As time goes on, stereotypes will always exist. As long as children are raised by people who believe these stereotypes, they will be passed on generation by generation. People have only recently lowered their standards when it comes to gender roles and stereotypes. The narrator tried her hardest to be herself and not give in to her family and the world’s demands, but at the end of it all, there was no happy ending. Life goes on and the world keeps on turning. Time progresses and so do people, but will it ever be enough to satisfy everyone? The answer is most likely not, but we can only hope.
From The moment were born well into our adulthood, we are in frequent and intense contact with toys from a wide diverse, types, complexities and composition. Toys are a very important part of a child’s experientially perceived reality operating in several related ways over and above their function as socializing mechanisms, as educational devices, as scaled down versions of the realities of the larger adult-dominated social world.
For children, society is unexplored territory, but children don’t tread these paths alone They are given a social Map to guide them where to go and how to behave. (Mastering Sociology, pg 89) Children learn about how to become a man or a woman through pretend play. For the girls they learn how to be a housewife with dollhouses and barbies, and boys they learn that they are the providers in life with construction play sets and racecar sets.
Sociological functions of play and toys can be analyzed in culture in order to emphasize the importance of child development.
My research takes place in a toy store where I establish minimum interactions with people in the store. The most common method that I used was the scientific method where I only observed children’s behavior and attitudes towards the toys they were attracted to and got out of it my own conclusions. Gender roles are influenced by mass media and social institutions.
Gender is an ascribed status that is given to you at birth. This means that is involuntary, but this one can be shaped by many agents or sources of socialization. Parents and different structures like cultural and social norms or global media have a huge impact on the infant’s life because their behaviors are reflected in the actions and decisions of these. While I was walking in the store, there was a particular moment that caught my attention, a parent was buying toys for their three daughters, each and one of them had to pick a toy from the store, but the decisions of the little girls were influenced by the parent. One of the girls did not want a doll, she wanted an action figure instead. At first, I was a little surprised because gender roles state that a person should act appropriately according to their gender and cultural norms. (Girls are supposed to play with dolls and be more delicate while boys are supposed to play with cars, guns, or balls). But I was more surprised on the answer of the parent, I thought that he was going to follow the patterns or rules as most of the other parents did in the store, but instead, he helped her choose an action figure.
The function of a toy is to help the child’s creative and emotional development and contribute to socialization in such a way that it is easy for him to communicate with other people. Something very interesting that I also noticed when I was there, was that the toys despite being in the same hall, these are completely segregated, to the right side were the toys for girls and to my left side were the toys for boys. This is clearly seen day by day in our society, most children prefer to play with children of the same gender or status, (having the same recognizable position within a society). Most of the toys had on their covers a specific gender, for example, kitchen toys, or houses only had the figure of a girl, and Nerf weapons, had the figure of a boy, this does not mean that all toys support gender exclusion. Mattel toys and WWE action figures showed gender inclusion since they not only had dolls that refer to girls but also male figures.
Finally, the toys of neutral gender did not have the highest consumption, since they are for ages 3 to 6 years, these toys can be blocks, wooden toys, coloring books, etc. However, bicycles, skateboards, and scooters can be considered neutral toys, but they lose that value when they are given a characteristic belonging to the male or female gender, these characteristics can be identified by color.
Toy companies use market strategies that facilitate the interest of their products, advertising through television ads, social networks, and newspapers, among others. They are forms of advertising, this influence thousands of people in this case children. Girls’ toys have striking and strong colors that make the girls get their attention and acquire the products, these colors can be pink, yellow, purple among others; while boys prefer that their toys have neutral colors such as black, gray, white, red, blue, etc.
Gender role happens when people are taught cultural roles based on their sex. Boys and girls are treated differently by people in their own environments like parents, siblings, and caregivers; Toys are a key factor in gender socialization. Gender roles can also contribute to gender inequality as one group finds itself blocked (segregated) from participation or access to some facilities, occupation or activity.